It wasn’t the night Donald Trump wanted or needed. An overhyped interview that attracted 1.5 million listeners at its peak was overshadowed by a 40-minute delay on X, formerly Twitter.
Elon Musk blamed a cyberattack, though his critics question whether his social media platform failed to accommodate the increased traffic. The wonky rollout brought back memories of Musk’s glitchy interview with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who launched his primary campaign in a softball interview with the billionaire business mogul.
Trump also faced softball after softball and, in fairness, Musk let the audience know it would be a friendly chat — a chance for self-described moderates like him to “catch a vibe.” The Kamala Harris-Tim Walz campaign seized on the moment: “Trump’s entire campaign is in service of people like Elon Musk and himself — self-obsessed rich guys who will sell out the middle class and who cannot run a livestream in the year 2024.” Here’s what you missed: Toward the end of the two-hour conversation, many listeners noted that the former president sounded like he was talking with a lisp and slurring his words.
The question of whether Trump was slurring was trending online for a while. His campaign said there must be something wrong with listeners’ hearing. What was clear, though, were all the slurs Trump used against his political opponents.
He said President Joe Biden, who defeated Trump in 2020 and is no longer running in the 2024 election, has a “stu.